Could the Cakewich be the best thing since sliced bread?

Use the silicone Cakewich sandwich cake mold to bake a cake in the shape of a double slice of bread. Slice the “bread” into layers and make your favorite Cakewich using appropriate-flavored cream fillings, jam or ice cream.

While we can’t wait to make the PB&J pound cake shown in the photo, we also want to bake chocolate Cakewiches (“pumpernickel”) filled with “egg salad” (whipped cream or buttercream with a dice of pound cake standing in for the yellow portion of the egg); ham salad (strawberry whipped cream/buttercream with a dice of red velvet cake) and cream cheese and smoked salmon (whipped cream/buttercream with a layer of apricot jam for the smoked salmon).

We can’t wait to bake this peanut butter
poundcake! Photo courtesy WorldwideFred.com.

• Purchase the Cakewich cake mold.
• Find more of our favorite cakes, plus recipes, in our Gourmet Cakes section.

Growlers are the new “in” and green
packaging for microwbrews. Photo courtesy
SimpleSteps.org.

Thanks to the growth of craft beer, there’s a growler resurgence in the United States. You can find them at breweries and brewpubs that sell take-out beer: Take-home growlers are filled from the tap. Some homebrewers use growlers as well, as an alternative to kegs or standard bottles for carbonating and storing beer.

In the old days growlers had hinged porcelain gasket caps. Today a screw-on cap is as likely (and less expensive). A properly sealed growler will hold carbonation indefinitely, like any other sealed beer bottle.

And it’s more economical to buy beer in a growler than go through many smaller bottles. Most places that sell growlers will re-fill them for you.

Expect to see more growlers (glass jugs, not tin pails) as craft beer fans demand to take home brews on tap.

One of the newer Whole Foods Markets in our area sells a reusable growler filled with your choice of beers on tap—a constantly changing selection. When the growler is empty, bring the growler back for a refill and pay for the beer only.

In addition to being able to try fresh microwbrews that aren’t available in bottles, the idea of reusable bottles that can be refilled time after time—instead of going into landfill every time—is appealing. In fact, Whole Foods market now offers 32-ounce growlers in addition to the 64-ounce.

• Discover more about beer, our favorite beers and our Beer Glossary.

The Pink Princess Cupcakes Kit is one of a series of cupcake mixes (along with Fancy Fairy and Magical Mermaid) that provides an adult-child baking-and-bonding opportunity.

There is unusual fun in making these cupcakes: A special blend of ingredients for both the cake and the icing magically changes the batter and frosting colors from white to pink when mixed (hot pink for the cake, pale pink for the frosting). This is sure to delight young participants, and was a treat for us older folks, too.

As far as baking goes, this is a good opportunity to demonstrate to kids how to use a mixer to combine wet ingredients (supplied by you) and the dry ingredients from the kit, and turn them into yummy cupcakes. The lavender paper tote box contains enough Pink Vanilla Cupcake Mix, Pink Princess Pink Vanilla Frosting Mix and Enchanted Confetti Sprinkles to make 12 cupcakes.

At $5.95 apiece, you can also use the totes as party favors. They’re available at KidsCookingShop.com.

Throw a Pink Princess Cupcake tea party.
Photo by Hannah Kaminsky | THE NIBBLE.

In fact, the Pink Princess Cupcakes Baking Kit is part of a series of products from Barbara Beery, bestselling children’s cookbook author and founder of Batter Up Kids Cooking.

Her latest Pink Princess cookbook, The Pink Princess Cupcakes Cookbook, has creative cupcake decorating ideas with beautiful full-page color photography. You don’t have to be a pastry chef; the decoration ideas are all within the reach of the typical mom. The volume serves as a “menu options book” to let your little princess pick out exactly what she’d like to have at her party.

• Also check out the Pink Princess Cookbook and the Pink Princess Tea Parties.
• If you want additional decorating ideas, possibly for another theme party, check out Ms. Beery’s Pink Princess Cupcakes Cookbook. Each of the recipes outlines a different theme—mermaid, fairytale and s’mores to name a few—but all are suited for little princesses.
• Find more cupcake ideas in our Gourmet Cakes Section.